Final: 49ers fall 10-9 to Panthers, now two games behind NFC West leader Seattle

If one decision summed up the 49ers’ worst offensive ineptitude under Jim Harbaugh’s watch, it came 2 yards from the Carolina Panthers’ end zone.

The 49ers, already with a 6-0 lead in hand, sent their offense on the field and bluffed as if they were going for it on fourth-and-1. Instead, they opted for another Phil Dawson field goal and never again got closer to the goal line in a 10-9 loss that snapped a five-game win streak.

What unfolded was the lowest offensive output (151 yards) since Harbaugh took over as coach in 2011. Idle last weekend, the 49ers (6-3) fell 2 1/2 games behind the NFC West-leading Seattle Seahawks (9-1).

Harbaugh cited two of the 49ers’ many casualties Sunday for why they bailed out on fourth-and-1 from the 2.

“We really were out of a couple personnel groups we would have liked to have been in in that situation,” Harbaugh said. “Both (Garrett) Celek and Vernon Davis were out. We needed time to move personnel around to accommodate that situation.”

Celek left with a first-quarter hamstring injury, Davis exited two snaps earlier with a concussion and that left only one healthy tight end, Vance McDonald. The 49ers entered the game 6-of-8 fourth-down calls, but without their regular two tight-end package, their power-run game apparently was put on hold.

Wide receiver Anquan Boldin called the 49ers’ overall offensive display “unacceptable.” They had just 46 net passing yards when factoring in Kaepernick’s career-high six sacks.

Kaepernick was 11-of-22 for 91 yards, and his final pass resulted in an interception during what he called “desperation mode” for the league’s worst-ranked passing attack.

As the 49ers’ second-leading receiver, Davis’s absence loomed large, and a reminder came when McDonald dropped a potential 35-yard pass at the Panthers’ 25-yard line early in the fourth quarter.

The 49ers defense admirably overcame their own war of attrition, losing safety Eric Reid to a concussion and defensive tackle Ray McDonald to an ankle injury. Among the unit’s reinforcements was Aldon Smith, who returned from a five-game absence but played only 11 snaps, typically one or two a series in a pass-rushing role.

Advertisement

Linebacker NaVarro Bowman called it “stressful, knowing you’re playing well but can’t control the other side of the ball (with the 49ers offense).”

Third downs especially doomed Kaepernick & Co. They converted just 2-of-13 third-down opportunities, mirroring their 3-of-12 efforts in their losses to the Seattle Seahawks and Indianapolis Colts in Weeks 2 and 3.

“That’s all on us,” Boldin said. “We have a number of weapons on offense. We’ve got to do a better job of making it happen.”

Caught on camera yelling after one of the 49ers’ failed drives, Boldin disputed the notion he was directing his anger at Kaepernick. Boldin finished with three receptions for 23 yards while Mario Manningham had three for 30 in his season debut.

The Panthers (6-3) won their fifth straight behind a solid defensive effort, timely offense and clutch special teams.

“They’re a good defense, but today was more of our lack of execution than what they were doing,” Kaepernick said.

Cam Inman

Post navigation

Were gonna hear all about how 49ers are terrible after a bye week.
But the truth is Kap sucks.

Das Dweeb

Terrible all around, except for Gore, who of course only got 16 carries – even when Davis left the game. The playcalling was hideous (not enough runs, runs at the wrong time, where are the moving pockets and screens and draws to take the teeth out of that pass rush, why take Gore out every other play), the drops were ugly, Dixon hurt us by returning that kick to the 12, Kaep repeatedly took bad sacks (especially on that very deep safety blitz), and he absolutely needs to be more involved on the ground – but most of all, the team needs to stop pretending it can pass protect. This line CANNOT pass protect. Against anyone. Let’s hope Manningham got those drops and non-heady plays out of his system in this game. And why wasn’t Tolbert penalized for using the crown of his helmet as a weapon against Reid?

The division race is over. But this can still be the most dangerous team in the league come the playoffs. They’ll just have to win playoff games on the road – including at Seattle, possibly. And figure out how to pass protect.

Matthew

Yeah, Kap is such a poor pass blocker, and his kick returns are not too good…man, that pass he dropped on the seam route, too. Wow